10 Great Quotes From Anna Kendrick's Memoir

Monday, November 28, 2016

I've been excited about Anna Kendrick's book for a while now, but even more so after seeing her in person two weeks ago. It did not disappoint.

The book holds the "I'm a celebrity and I'm relatable" feel you'd expect, but in a way that actually feels genuine. She makes fun of herself a lot. She gives us behind-the-scenes insight on what she was really thinking and feeling during times we've seen her on stage or on the screen.

As I read, I was constantly pulling out my phone to jot down a quote into my Notes.

Here are ten of my favorites:

1.

"Like most enemies in life, I hoped to punish her with passive-aggressive glances and silent—but passionate!—resentment. She retaliated by forgetting I existed. Ah, the moral victory."

You know those times where you're upset with somebody for whatever reason, so you decide to cut ties and really stick it to 'em by vowing to never like them again? Always better in theory. In reality, it's not sticking it to 'em at all. Chances are, they don't care as much as you do and/or they move on. Being upset is fine, but there's no need for us to make a conscious effort to maintain that anger and resentment.

2.

"People being tough with you doesn't mean they're villains."

Self-explanatory. I loved this one.3.

"I think self-doubt is healthy. And having to fight for the thing you want doesn't mean you deserve it any less."

Self-doubt is normal, and I do agree that it's healthy. We should all question ourselves from time to time. First, it prevents us from feeling too entitled. Second, it gives us a chance to think of our situation differently and defend ourselves (against ourselves, our own worst enemy).4.

"It was a real lesson in my endless capacity to hold a grudge. I did it so well, I don't even notice that it's happening. I walk around with these calcified resentments for years until someone points them out and I can go, 'Good Lord, is that still in here? Let's get rid of that.'"

This stuck out to me because of how much I can relate to it. Maybe too much. It's similar to the first quote: We shouldn't hold on to anger and resentment. Sometimes it happens kind of unintentionally. We think we're over something until a person's name is mentioned and our body tenses up. Wait, I'm still angry? Let's get rid of that.5.

"I thought I knew plenty about fashion. I knew gowns were more formal than short dresses, skirts were more formal than pants, and leaving the house in just socks and a sports bra would get you arrested. Now you're telling me there's more to fashion than finding a dress that shows enough boob to distract from your face?"

As someone who is not the best at dressing herself, this is pretty much the extent of what I know about fashion as well.6.

"I'm also grateful that someone shook me out of my protective shell of self-righteousness. It's healthy. Even though I like my shell very much. There will always be people who use fashion as a status symbol. But I don't want to be friends with those people anyway."

We all need someone who will shake us out of our shell when we need it. And I agree with the last part, too. To me, fashion is fun, something to play around with, not a symbol of status.7.

"Now I know just enough to know that I don't know anything."

Same.8.

"Even when I got nominated for an Oscar, I was still just an anxious, jaded procrastinator."

Reading about the post-Oscar-nomination part of Anna's life was interesting. She talks about how she felt like a fraud during the press for "Up in the Air" because even though she was in the running for an Academy Award, she still viewed herself as just another ordinary person. It was a reminder that celebrities are people too, with their own set of struggles.9.

"Fame doesn't change much else. It doesn't change how you feel about your high school 'nemesis' or how your passive-aggressive uncle treats you."

The two differences Anna notes between her pre-fame and post-fame life are that if you Google her name, you actually get her, and that people will occasionally stop her for a picture. You mean a celebrity can still worry about old nemeses and have passive-aggressive relatives like the rest of us??10.

"I think I need to become perfect all at once, so I keep getting overwhelmed and putting it off. I can't remember the last time that I didn't have something hanging over my head. There are usually about thirty to eighty things. Is that normal? Don't tell me. If it's not, I'm a jerk. If it is, that's super-depressing, and I know I'll just use 'this is normal' as an excuse to procrastinate even more."

This is my favorite bit from the entire book. It's so... human. I'll probably print it out and frame it.